This is an introduction to college life and surveys topics from policies and procedures to career exploration. This course outlines strategies the student can use to achieve a successful college experience. The emphasis is on the attainment of superior personal and academic skills. This is a three credit hour course.

COURSE RATIONALE / TRANSFERABILITY

This is a general education course. It transfers as college credit and in many colleges and universities. There is no guarantee that PS 113A will transfer to most two or four year college for credit. Information concerning articulation agreements with regional colleges and universities can be obtained at the NMJC Counseling Office. It is important to check with the institution to which you are planning to transfer to determine transferability. Planning for course credit transfer is ultimately the student’s responsibility. All students are encouraged to keep the course syllabus as it will help determine the transferability of this course credit to another institution.

(This is a NEW edition and old used books will not work. It is also a loose leaf version. You'll need to purchase a 3 ring binder!)

Much of the work in this class is done through Canvas and MindTap. Access to an updated computer and access to Internet is essential for your success.

Suggested:

Comfortable computer and Internet skills are quite necessary for this course. Prior Canvas experience would be extremely helpful. Willingness to be self motivated with great time management skills are also a plus.

Chapter Quizzes: At the end of each chapter is a short quiz. You'll have 30 minutes to complete each one. (Copies are in your book.)

Final Exam and Pre/Post Assessments: The Final Exam will be comprehensive which means that questions can come from any point in the semester. Pre/Post Assessments will include an assessment of your knowledge coming into the class and exiting the class.

Grade Rounding Policy: I round your final grade when appropriate. For example, if you end up with a 79.8, I will round that to 80, which is a "B". If your grade is 79.4, your grade remains a "C". Anything .5 or over will round up.

Grading Response Time: I will do my best to have assignments graded within 10 days after their due date.

Attendance and Late Work Policy: In order to promote success in college, this course will adhere to a strict attendance and late work policy.

Concerning attendance and being late to class…In a T/R or M/W class, if you have more than 4 unexcused absences, you MAY be dropped from the course. Being late and or leaving early 3 times constitutes an unexcused absence.

Excused absences must have proof (doctor’s note, funeral announcement, note from the coach/professor, etc.) and as much as possible provided before the absence.

Concerning Late Work…In this class, you typically have 1 week to turn in assignments. The deadline will extend 1 week further, but will come with a late work penalty (significant points deducted at my discretion). After the week extension, the assignment will not be accepted! This extension does not apply to the Pre/Post Assessment or the Final Exam.

Concerning the use of proper English, grammar, and spelling. In this class you are being taught skills to help you become a successful student. The expectation at NMJC is that you turn in professional college level work. If there is work turned in with poor grammar, spelling, English, text type language, you will be temporarily assigned a zero and it will be returned to you. You will be given the opportunity to resubmit within a reasonable time frame. In most assignments, 20% of your grade will be given for the proper answer and 80% of the grade for proper writing.

INSTITUTIONAL STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

New Mexico Junior College’s institutional student learning outcomes represent the knowledge and abilities developed
by students attending New Mexico Junior College. Upon completion students should achieve the following learning outcomes
along with specific curriculum outcomes for respective areas of study:

Communication

Comprehend information to summarize, analyze, evaluate, and apply to a specific situation.

Communicate in an accurate, correct, and understandable manner.

Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

Define a problem and arrive at a logical solution.

Use appropriate technology and information systems to collect, analyze, and organize information.

Apply critical thinking, analysis, and problem solving to data.

Self and Community

Analyze and reflect on the ethical dimensions of legal, social, and / or scientific issues.

Communicate an awareness of a variety of perspectives of ethical issues.

Interact with individuals and within groups with integrity and awareness of others’ opinions, feelings and values.

DEPARTMENTAL STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

Departmental objectives for this course state that by the end of this course, students should be able to...

1) apply appropriate academic skills commonly recognized to lead to success in education and their careers.

3) apply necessary life skills in order to know self and contribute to a diverse community.

SPECIFIC COURSE STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this College Success course, students should be able to:

1. Recognize the importance of success skills in their life.2. Gain insight into how their own learning is best achieved through a learning skills inventory.3. Develop a time management system that will allow them to balance all aspects of life and reach the goals which they have set.4. Improve memory techniques and apply them to all aspects of one’s life.5. Improve reading skills by becoming an active reader.6. Discuss note taking skills and develop a system that works for them.7. Discover the art of test taking and improve one’s performance on tests.8. Improve their critical thinking skills in order to enhance learning.9. Recognize the importance of effective communication and other personal skills like money management and good health.10. Recognize the value of diversity that comes in many forms throughout academics and life.11. Increase awareness of available student services at NMJC.12. Determine their own personal academic/career goals and set a course to achieve them.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

To log into your course, go to NMJC's website at nmjc.edu and look on the right hand side. Look for Canvas-Online Course Access. Click on it, log in, and then go to the courses pull down at the top. Click on your course-College Success.

If NMJC's website is down, the direct link to Canvas is https://nmjc.instructure.com/login.

Concerning cell phones in the classroom: Cell phones used for anything outside classwork which is often permitted is very distracting to the professor, other students, and you! Please silence them and put them away during class! Your undivided attention will aid in your success for all of your classes! If they become a problem, I will collect them for the duration of the class. I appreciate your cooperation.

GENERAL/MISCELLANEOUS

Students will be held responsible for the information on these
pages.

Academic Honesty
Each student is expected to maintain the highest standards of honesty and integrity
in online academic and professional matters. The College reserves the right
to take disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal, against any student
who is found guilty of academic dishonesty or otherwise fails to meet these
standards. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, dishonesty in
quizzes, tests, or assignments; claiming credit for work not done or done by
others; and nondisclosure or misrepresentation in filling out applications or
other College records. Cheating or gaining illegal information for any type of graded work is considered dishonest and will be dealt with accordingly.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Information
Any student requiring special accommodations should contact the Special Needs
Student Services Coordinator at (575) 492-2576 or by e-mail at specialneeds@nmjc.edu.

Attendance Policy
Attendance is required at every session of each course for which the student is enrolled. When unavoidable circumstances make attendance impossible, students must provide a satisfactory explanation of their absences to their professors. College-sponsored activities are considered excused absences and the appropriate sponsor of those students who will be absent from class will notify professors. Students having absences due to college-sponsored activities will need to make arrangements with the affected classes / professor to take care of required work; however, arrangements for make-ups should be made within a reasonable time frame, usually within one week of the absence. Regarding make-up work, absences due to late registration are considered the same as regular absences.

Cell Phones/Pagers
All cell phones and pagers must be turned off when the student is participating
in any lecture, laboratory, or other learning activity.

Classroom Conduct
The professor is responsible for maintaining a class environment best suited
for effective learning. By registering for this class, the student is assumed
to have entered into an agreement with New Mexico Junior College and the professor
to attend the class regularly and to behave in an appropriate manner
at all times. Disruptive behavior may result in the student
being removed from the class.

Food and Drink Policy
Food items and soft drinks may not be consumed in NMJC classrooms.
Students are also discouraged from bringing food and drink items into the classroom
even though these items remain in sealed packaging. Bottled water is permissible.

No Children in the Classroom
In order to adhere to instructional procedures as well as maintain the safety
of children, NMJC’s policy of no children in the classrooms (lecture,
lab, etc.) will be followed.

Plagiarism
Offering the work of another as one’s own, without proper acknowledgment,
is plagiarism; therefore, any student who fails to give credit for quotations
or essentially identical expression of material taken from books, encyclopedias,
magazines and other reference works, or from the themes, reports, or other writings
of a fellow student, is guilty of plagiarism. Plagiarism violates the academic
honesty policy and is considered cheating.

Smoking/Use of Tobacco
New Mexico Junior College is cognizant of the health hazards associated with
smoking / use of tobacco for the smoker, as well as the non-smoker. In an effort
to provide a healthy environment for students, employees, and others who may
frequent the campus, NMJC prohibits smoking / use of tobacco inside any campus
building or facility.

Tutoring Assistance
Free tutoring services are available to all NMJC students through Brainfuse and the Academic Success Center located in Mansur Hall room 123 and 124.

Withdrawal Policy
Regular, punctual attendance is required for all classes at NMJC. Although the professor has the right to drop any student who has missed the equivalent of 2 weeks of instruction (based on a 16 week semester) whether it’s a face to face, online, or a hybrid course, it is not guaranteed that the professor will drop the student. If the student chooses to stop attending a class, he/she should withdraw from the class by accessing your student account in the T-Bird Web Portal at www.nmjc.edu, or submitting the required paperwork to the Registrar’s Office by 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 21, 2017. All students are encouraged to discuss their class status with the professor prior to withdrawing from the class.

Emergency/Critical Incident Information
New Mexico Junior College is committed to providing a safe environment for
all visitors, staff, and students. This Emergency/Critical Incident Information
sheet is intended to highlight potential areas of risk to campus personnel
and facilities. New Mexico Junior College has identified potential risks
and has prepared a plan to prepare for emergencies. This will not prepare
you for all eventualities, but is intended to give the student a basic awareness
of disaster preparedness. Please familiarize yourself with the information
provided and be prepared to take action in the event of an emergency. (Students
are encouraged to notify faculty of potential medical conditions, which
may require emergency response.)

Building Evacuation
In the event an occupied building of New Mexico Junior College has to be
evacuated because of an emergency, the building representative will be contacted
and the NMJC Evacuation Plan will be activated. Classes in session will
be contacted, and the instructor will be advised of the type of emergency.
Should the decision be made to evacuate the building, the instructor will
advise the students, who will leave the building in an orderly manner. If
the campus is not being evacuated, the students will gather in a pre-determined
“muster area” until the emergency can be evaluated, and a decision
made whether to resume or dismiss classes. A map is attached indicating
the safe areas determined for evacuation.

If the campus is being evacuated, students are requested to proceed to
their vehicle and drive off campus in an orderly manner, observing the traffic
rules. Students living in the dormitories will return to the dorms, where
college transportation will be provided if needed.

Building Safe Areas
Staff and students are responsible for knowing the location of safe areas
in each of the NMJC buildings. Directional signs will be posted in each
building. The buildings will be utilized in the event of a tornado, inclement
weather, or flash flood situations. Staff and students are also requested
to familiarize themselves with the location of fire extinguishers in the
buildings.

Specific EmergenciesTornado: The best protection is in an interior room on the lowest
level of the building. Go to a designated safe area and stay until the danger
has passed. If no building is available, lie in a ditch or low lying area.Fire: Know the location of fire extinguishers in the building.
Activate the nearest fire alarm or call 911. Evacuate the building in a
calm, orderly manner and proceed to the nearest muster area.Flash Flood/Inclement Weather: Traveling conditions may vary considerably
depending on the situation. No student is encouraged to travel when conditions
are considered dangerous. The President will announce, via the radio stations,
when weather prevents scheduled classes.Prison Escape: In the event of an escape from the Lea County Detention
Facility, notification will be made to classes in progress and decisions
made whether to dismiss classes. All persons are requested to be good witnesses
and report suspicious activity.